C55 in the Snow
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From: Northern Virginia
2006 C55 AMG, 2.8L Quattro, Softail Nostalgia 1550 (Stage III), Sporster (slammed)
C55 in the Snow
You'all know this story. When I left for work this morning there was only a light dusting of fresh snow and not much coming down so I figured it was safe to go in. But of course the idiots were out in force for this first snow of the season and traffic was impossible. My normal 12 mile, 20 minute commute turned into an hour and a half ordeal. My NAV was highlighting traffic problems non-stop from the moment I hit the major roads and offering to re-route me every 5 minutes. So when I finally got to my office there was almost an inch on the roads and more coming fast. Needless to say I got my chance to see how the AMG does in the snow. You can sum it up with one cliché: like a fish out of water. Actually it wasn't as bad as I would have thought and I did make it home safely (knocking on all kinds of wood) but just barley! Everything was fine, just going very slow and leaving a lot of space when braking or going up/down hills, until I got to my office's parking lot. I pulled into the left turn lane which was blanketed in an inch of untouched fresh snow going about 30 and could not stop at all. It was 100' of ABS and prayers. When I finally bled off what little momentum I had and came slowly to a stop I looked in my rear view to see another Benz, a big W210 E-class, with his wheels locked and cocked ABS'ing right up behind me. And man was it close. I pulled into my parking lot and just kept going, right back out and headed home without stopping. I sent my team a Blackberry message from the first light I came to telling them not to expect me in and putted--very slowly--home. Well, now I know. Next time I'll take the wife's Quattro.
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From: Philadelphia, PA
2008 A8L, 2002 996TT X50, 2009 X5
What do you have on your C55 right now, as far as tires go? Summer tires (e.g. stock tires on C32, C55, et al.) are WORTHLESS in any sort of cold, snowy conditions. They harden up into bricks, and with essentially no (or minimal) sipes, they just plain don't work. I think most people throw around a "45 degree" rule of thumb - meaning, don't drive summer tires if it's 45 or below, regardless of precipitation.
If you have a set of dedicated snow tires, along with traction control and common sense, you should be able to get around in 1" of snow without too much drama. That said, these high hp rear wheel drive sports sedans aren't optimal in these conditions (to say the least) - so if you've got an Audi w/ Quattro, you're right on the money... take that one instead. I drive my C230 Coupe in the winter here in PA (w/ snow tires), and I've rarely had any problems, short of near-blizzard conditions.
If you have a set of dedicated snow tires, along with traction control and common sense, you should be able to get around in 1" of snow without too much drama. That said, these high hp rear wheel drive sports sedans aren't optimal in these conditions (to say the least) - so if you've got an Audi w/ Quattro, you're right on the money... take that one instead. I drive my C230 Coupe in the winter here in PA (w/ snow tires), and I've rarely had any problems, short of near-blizzard conditions.
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From: Northern Virginia
2006 C55 AMG, 2.8L Quattro, Softail Nostalgia 1550 (Stage III), Sporster (slammed)
Sorry, not stock NAV, I turned on my Blackberry 8820's Telenav just to see if there were traffic problems.
Stock Pirelli PZero Rosso's and yes, they are hockey pucks. H*ll, they'll spin freely all the way to 3rd if you got full throttle even on hot, dry pavement.
Last edited by Drop-a-Daimler; Dec 5, 2007 at 03:41 PM.
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C32 AMG
You MUST get bona fide winter tires or all season tires if you're going to drive in the snow. A good summer tire shouldn't even be used if it's COLD because the compound hardens up like a hockey puck. Good tires and a gentle foot will make the AMG passable.
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From: Chicago
04 C32
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From: Northern Virginia
2006 C55 AMG, 2.8L Quattro, Softail Nostalgia 1550 (Stage III), Sporster (slammed)
What's funny is when the SUV drivers get all cocky in the snow then realize the hard way that although they can go up a snow covered hill better than a sport sedan, they don't handle well in the snow. I saw a guy in a mid-sized SUV do a 360 and side-swipe a lamp post today. He thought he could just whip out into traffic and go but his a$$ end kept coming around and he stayed on the gas. Then it was up over the curb and WHAM. His side trim ended up about 20' ovr the sidewalk. The SUVs might go in the snow but most they handle like the pigs they are. That's not counting things like the Cayenne.
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From: The Windy City
'02 C32, '10 135i M-Sport, '10 E63, '17 GLE63S
With stock tires (not sure what kind, but 59k miles on 'em...) and no mods to speak of, let alone an LSD, I'm pretty much fine in the snow. Sure, accelerating is a bit tough on solid layers of snow, but otherwise the car is practically idiot-proof. Not only am I the perfect idiot to test it's mettle, but I haven't even had the car long enough to settle on the perfect seat position yet, let alone learn to drive it :P
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C32 AMG
What's funny is when the SUV drivers get all cocky in the snow then realize the hard way that although they can go up a snow covered hill better than a sport sedan, they don't handle well in the snow. I saw a guy in a mid-sized SUV do a 360 and side-swipe a lamp post today. He thought he could just whip out into traffic and go but his a$$ end kept coming around and he stayed on the gas. Then it was up over the curb and WHAM. His side trim ended up about 20' ovr the sidewalk. The SUVs might go in the snow but most they handle like the pigs they are. That's not counting things like the Cayenne.
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From: Chicago - Museum Campus
'10 GLK 350 Capri Blue/Black
Yeah, I just tried my C32 in the snow for the first time this season. Didn't work out so well. I'm now waiting on a new front lower control arm to replace the one that bent when the car slid into a curb.
Be careful out there! 'W' mode and ESP gives you a false sense of security!!
Be careful out there! 'W' mode and ESP gives you a false sense of security!!
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From: Northern Virginia
2006 C55 AMG, 2.8L Quattro, Softail Nostalgia 1550 (Stage III), Sporster (slammed)
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From: Boston
2004 C32 ///AMG
Yeah, I just tried my C32 in the snow for the first time this season. Didn't work out so well. I'm now waiting on a new front lower control arm to replace the one that bent when the car slid into a curb.
Be careful out there! 'W' mode and ESP gives you a false sense of security!!
Be careful out there! 'W' mode and ESP gives you a false sense of security!!
Same thing happened to me on Tuesday. Had BF Goodrich T/A KDW's, made a corner doing 15 but there was ice on the ground, so I braked and the car just slid all the way into the curb. Dented and scraped my IForged wheel and now my drivers side wheel is slanted left a bit while my other side sits straight.
BTW, how much is it to replace the control arm? is it an easy DIY? I have an appointment tomorrow at 4:00pm, but don't want to take the car in if the charge $100 just to tell me the control arm is bent, and another $500 to fix.
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From: Peoria, Arizona
RENNtech C32 AMG
Small world huh...
Same thing happened to me on Tuesday. Had BF Goodrich T/A KDW's, made a corner doing 15 but there was ice on the ground, so I braked and the car just slid all the way into the curb. Dented and scraped my IForged wheel and now my drivers side wheel is slanted left a bit while my other side sits straight.
BTW, how much is it to replace the control arm? is it an easy DIY? I have an appointment tomorrow at 4:00pm, but don't want to take the car in if the charge $100 just to tell me the control arm is bent, and another $500 to fix.
Same thing happened to me on Tuesday. Had BF Goodrich T/A KDW's, made a corner doing 15 but there was ice on the ground, so I braked and the car just slid all the way into the curb. Dented and scraped my IForged wheel and now my drivers side wheel is slanted left a bit while my other side sits straight.
BTW, how much is it to replace the control arm? is it an easy DIY? I have an appointment tomorrow at 4:00pm, but don't want to take the car in if the charge $100 just to tell me the control arm is bent, and another $500 to fix.
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From: Boston, MA
This post clearly illustrates idiosyncrasy of our country. We make and enforce absurd speed limits under slogans of public safety, yet we fail to provide even the basic DE. What a disgrace. 
GET WINTER TIRES!!! End of story.
See this post for some tips. https://mbworld.org/forums/c32-amg-c55-amg-w203/217838-winter-tire-questions.html
BTW, car’s ability to stop has nothing to do with drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD). E-class was ABSing and skidding because of wrong tires and incorrect braking technique. Drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD) has no influence on static cornering grip. It only changes cornering dynamic. Drive configuration only influences acceleration. Holding everything equal, AWD will always out-accelerate FWD and RWD out of the hole.
GET WINTER TIRES!!! End of story.
See this post for some tips. https://mbworld.org/forums/c32-amg-c55-amg-w203/217838-winter-tire-questions.htmlBTW, car’s ability to stop has nothing to do with drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD). E-class was ABSing and skidding because of wrong tires and incorrect braking technique. Drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD) has no influence on static cornering grip. It only changes cornering dynamic. Drive configuration only influences acceleration. Holding everything equal, AWD will always out-accelerate FWD and RWD out of the hole.
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LET C32 2002
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2002 C32, 2011 VW GTI
Egads! Get those things off of there before you kill yourself! No car will drive well with summer high performance tires like these. The tread is wrong for snow and the rubber compound is wrong for cold weather. The car will drive just fine with a good winter tire. It sux but you have to bite the bullet and buy dedicated winter tires if you want to drive these cars in the winter time.
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From: Northern Virginia
2006 C55 AMG, 2.8L Quattro, Softail Nostalgia 1550 (Stage III), Sporster (slammed)
I'm not sure how my post "clearly illustrates idiosyncrasy of our country" or a lack of education. If you read it, hopefully you'll notice that when I left for work it wasn't bad out and that the roads turned bad after I left. If anything my post clearly illustrates a lack of ability to accurately predict the weather--a failing that has plagued civilization since the dawn of time. Of that I plead guilty. But hopefully you'll notice my leveraging some rudimentary drivers education by turning around and returning home as soon as I realized the roads were getting dangerous for the vehicle configuration I was piloting. Now if you are saying I am displaying a lack of education every time I take my car with summer tires out when the ambient temperature drops below 45 degrees, then of that I am going to continue to be guilty.
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From: Peoria, Arizona
RENNtech C32 AMG
This post clearly illustrates idiosyncrasy of our country. We make and enforce absurd speed limits under slogans of public safety, yet we fail to provide even the basic DE. What a disgrace.
GET WINTER TIRES!!! End of story. See this post for some tips. https://mbworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=217838
BTW, car’s ability to stop has nothing to do with drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD). E-class was ABSing and skidding because of wrong tires and incorrect braking technique. Drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD) has no influence on static cornering grip. It only changes cornering dynamic. Drive configuration only influences acceleration. Holding everything equal, AWD will always out-accelerate FWD and RWD out of the hole.
GET WINTER TIRES!!! End of story.
See this post for some tips. https://mbworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=217838BTW, car’s ability to stop has nothing to do with drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD). E-class was ABSing and skidding because of wrong tires and incorrect braking technique. Drive configuration (AWD, FWD or RWD) has no influence on static cornering grip. It only changes cornering dynamic. Drive configuration only influences acceleration. Holding everything equal, AWD will always out-accelerate FWD and RWD out of the hole.
BTW, winter tires are not needed in Phoenix AZ
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From: Boston, MA
Drop-a-Daimler, do not take this personal. This was NOT a stab at you. Most drivers do not even know that there are various types of tires (summer, winter, rain, mud, etc.). Most do not understand that tires are the signal most important performance and safety feature on a car. All of the acceleration, braking and turning happens via tires. Well over 40K people die each year on our roads and most of these deaths can be prevented with better DE. However, our government rather scam its citizens with illegal, fraudulent and corrupt speed regulations, than educate us and thus prevent death and injuries.
You going home = common sense
You blaming C55 for poor snow/ice performance = lack of DE
E-class ABSing = lack of DE
SUV doing a 360 and side-swiping a lamp post = lack of DE
You going home = common sense
You blaming C55 for poor snow/ice performance = lack of DE
E-class ABSing = lack of DE
SUV doing a 360 and side-swiping a lamp post = lack of DE
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From: Chicago - Museum Campus
'10 GLK 350 Capri Blue/Black
I just got mine back, the total was $580. Took about a day to fix. They replaced the lower control arm and the associated hardware. All it took after that was a good 4-wheel alignment. I just drove it for about 30 minutes and everything feels just fine. I can consider myself very lucky.
He mentioned that my back tires were shot, so now it's on to that issue. I might go with the Kumho ASX's again, they worked out pretty well on the S2000 as an Ultra-High Performance all season tire. Cheap too, they're only $110 for the back at TireRack.
Since I live downtown Chicago, I don't have to worry about getting dedicated snow tires, they do a pretty good job of keeping the roads clear. And on the other days, there's always a taxi...
He mentioned that my back tires were shot, so now it's on to that issue. I might go with the Kumho ASX's again, they worked out pretty well on the S2000 as an Ultra-High Performance all season tire. Cheap too, they're only $110 for the back at TireRack.
Since I live downtown Chicago, I don't have to worry about getting dedicated snow tires, they do a pretty good job of keeping the roads clear. And on the other days, there's always a taxi...
Last edited by Al Bundy; Dec 6, 2007 at 02:23 PM.
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From: Boston
2004 C32 ///AMG
I just got mine back, the total was $580. Took about a day to fix. They replaced the lower control arm and the associated hardware. All it took after that was a good 4-wheel alignment. I just drove it for about 30 minutes and everything feels just fine. I can consider myself very lucky.
He mentioned that my back tires were shot, so now it's on to that issue. I might go with the Kumho ASX's again, they worked out pretty well on the S2000 as an Ultra-High Performance all season tire. Cheap too, they're only $110 for the back at TireRack.
Since I live downtown Chicago, I don't have to worry about getting dedicated snow tires, they do a pretty good job of keeping the roads clear. And on the other days, there's always a taxi...
He mentioned that my back tires were shot, so now it's on to that issue. I might go with the Kumho ASX's again, they worked out pretty well on the S2000 as an Ultra-High Performance all season tire. Cheap too, they're only $110 for the back at TireRack.
Since I live downtown Chicago, I don't have to worry about getting dedicated snow tires, they do a pretty good job of keeping the roads clear. And on the other days, there's always a taxi...
thanks.
I just canceled my appointment, they wanted $124 just to diagnose the problem.
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From: Northern Virginia
2006 C55 AMG, 2.8L Quattro, Softail Nostalgia 1550 (Stage III), Sporster (slammed)
No problem, no offense taken, but to clarify a bit more I was not blaming the AMG for her snow performance (thus my comment that she "... wasn't as bad as I would have thought"), just trying to impart what I hope was an entertaining story. I take her out everyday with a pretty good idea of how she will do in the current conditions and have no expectations beyond what your average high performance, well engineered, RWD sport sedan with summer tires should do. In fact she did better than I expected considering I have lightened her by 100lbs and added 20 hp so there is nothing to blame. Praise would describe it better. If I didn't think she could handle it I'd have taken the old lady's Quattro.
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From: Jersey
2003 E55 AMG
Yeah so today on my commute to school i was running late and although there was no snow on the roads it was 25 degrees out. Giving it throttle at anything below 35 caused my traction control to get angry with me
